Empty Tears
by rawrchelle
Summary: Itachi/Sakura. Sasuke/Sakura. Non-massacre. Sasuke hated it when Sakura wasn’t the way she always was: single and in love with him. And it wasn’t like she had a boyfriend, either. No—she had a fiancé. And his name was Uchiha Itachi. REVISED: 07-31-09.


**Title: **Empty Tears**  
Pairing:** Uchiha Itachi and Haruno Sakura, Uchiha Sasuke and Haruno Sakura**  
Genre: **Romance/General**  
Summary: **Sasuke hated it when Sakura wasn't the way she always was: single and in love with him. And it wasn't like she had a boyfriend, either. She had a fiancé. And his name was Uchiha Itachi.**  
Theme:** 05. your precious someone**  
Rating: **PG-13**  
Word Count: **1876**  
Warning: **It's in Sasuke's POV. I'm pretty sure some of you will dislike that from the lack of ItaSaku action that provides. XD But I wanted a fresh feeling. And there are some slight hints of angst. Yeah. But that's always to be expected when Sasuke's involved.

This was written for my 50 shinobi themes challenge on LJ. Much thanks to xx. false - deception for always putting up with me sending her stuff to beta, like, all the time. :)

Disclaimed.  
read&review.

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"Itachi, you are now twenty-six. Have you considered marriage yet?" Sasuke knew that question was bound to be asked to every male Uchiha. He listened on indifferently as he helped himself to another bowl of rice.

"No." The answer was resolute.

His father sighed wearily. "Then we will need to organize an arranged marriage. You cannot continue like this for much longer."

Sasuke wondered who'd want to marry his brother anyway, when he was so socially retarded—but he didn't dare speak up, because he was sure he'd be scolded. It'd be amusing to see which unfortunate female would be landed with that fate.

The sound of chopsticks against a bowl was heard when his older brother placed his empty bowl down. "If that is the way it has to be, then I already have a fiancée in mind." Sasuke was vaguely surprised. For Itachi to have already decided on a girl wasn't something he expected. In fact, it almost seemed impossible.

"Who is it?" His father sounded like he didn't even care, as long as he got his grandkids.

"Haruno Sakura."

He wondered how his dad would like pink-haired grandchildren.

**x**

"Did you seriously say yes?" Naruto sounded just about heartbroken as he twirled a kunai on his finger.

Sakura nodded. "Yeah." Sasuke closed his eyes, resting his head against the tree trunk that stood sturdily behind his back. Life has been more stressful as of late, and he wasn't sure why.

"Why?" his other teammate demanded, stabbing the weapon into the grass. He was sure Sakura flinched at that.

"Because…Itachi-san is a kind person, even if he doesn't seem like it." She sounded a little regretful, but that might just be wishful thinking on his part.

"It's because he looks like Sasuke, isn't it?" At his name, Sasuke's eyes opened just a crack, and saw the girl stiffen. He chuckled inwardly to himself. How pathetic. To marry his brother just because they looked alike.

"N-No!" Red tinted her cheeks as she glanced over at the Uchiha. He closed his eyes again.

He heard Naruto pull the kunai from the ground. "If it isn't that, then what is it? There's no way in hell you'd get over him. Actually, I'd rather you like teme than that bastard. Have you ever _seen_ him on his missions? He's a goddamn killing machine! Even Sasuke's got more of a heart than him!"

The wind was soft as it fluttered past his cheeks. He wondered when it began to feel so good.

In truth, this arranged marriage bothered him. Of course, no one was aware of that, but he _hated_ it. It was a load of bullshit, if you asked him. Itachi didn't need to get married. Sasuke would do that for him. He'd bear children to pass along the Uchiha name. His brother had no right to steal his most loyal and faithful fangirl from him. He liked Sakura the way she was just fine: single.

But now she's fucking engaged.

There wasn't even anything that good about her. She wasn't from a clan, she wasn't particularly pretty, and the only good quality about her was her chakra control. Sasuke hated this. He hated _her_. And he hated the whole way he was actually bothered by it.

"I'm sure Itachi-san is a very sweet person…" Her voice was carried along by the breeze, right into his ears, and he wished he didn't have to hear it. "Sasuke-kun looks like a total jerk on the outside, but we all know he cares in one way or another. His brother isn't much different."

Naruto snorted. "Yeah, right."

Yeah, right, it was. Sasuke stood up, brushing the grass from his shorts. He'd had enough of this. He was going home.

"Sasuke-kun?" _Stop talking to me._ "Where are you going?" _Home. Soon, it'll be your home, too. A fucking prison._ "Are you mad?" _Not in the slightest._

"I need a shower," was what he found himself saying. He was the perfect liar. That was one of the things he liked most about himself. "I'll catch you guys later." And he left, hands casually in his pockets.

And suddenly, the wind felt so bitterly cold.

**x**

"You're angry." Those were the first words he heard when he arrived home.

"And you're insane," he all but spat, turning in the direction of his room. He didn't want to see his brother's face.

There was that light chuckle—that light, _despicable_ chuckle. "You are not pleased with the fact your teammate is now my fiancée. Were you planning to take her hand in marriage, Otouto?"

Sasuke turned his head, a smirk adorning his lips. "Only to spite you, Nii-san." And he picked up his pace so he wouldn't have to talk to him anymore. He wanted time alone to think. Time alone to slap some sense into himself.

"You have feelings for her." The words bounced off the suddenly cold walls. "She is your precious someone."

He didn't look back. "Why would I dare have feelings for my older brother's fiancée?"

"Feelings are not something you can control."

"Says the person who has none himself." As soon as the words left his lips, he felt his back pressed up against the frigid wall, a kunai to his throat and Itachi's menacingly spinning Sharingan boring down on him. He forced himself not to swallow and have it sound like a gulp.

"You're going to take that back," his older brother said softly, danger laced into every word.

Sasuke's eyes narrowed. "I'm not going to take back something I meant."

There was a long, tense moment. Uchiha against Uchiha, crimson against obsidian. Older against younger. Itachi against Sasuke.

The blade was ever so cold against his skin, just threatening to slice it apart. He loved the feel of adrenaline flowing through his veins. It gave him something to think about. Gave him a reason to forget.

A faint smirk grew on Itachi's lips, and the blade's pressure on his throat lessened. "You are foolish, Otouto. Haruno Sakura has nothing to offer our clan. Why else would I marry her if not for feelings?"

"Don't expect me to understand that twisted mind of yours," Sasuke hissed softly before shoving the weapon away from him. His room seemed so close, and yet so far. Fortunately for him, Itachi let him go.

Okay, so maybe he didn't really mean what he said. If his older brother didn't have feelings, then what did all of those piggyback rides when he was younger mean? What about helping him with homework, and training? And ruffling his hair when he did a good job, or flicking him in the forehead to show he cared, even though he was too busy?

That was in the past, Sasuke decided as he lay down on his bed. And the past didn't have to be the same as the present.

Feelings? Don't kid him. Uchihas were not known for their feelings. They were known for their skill and prestige. And Sasuke—Sasuke certainly didn't have feelings for Haruno Sakura. She wasn't his precious someone. Whatever the hell that was even supposed to mean.

Oh, fuck it all. He was going to sleep.

**x**

"Don't marry him." The words left his mouth before he even registered the thought in his mind.

Sakura blinked, looking speechless. "What?"

"Don't marry him. He's no good for you." He _tried_ to appear indifferent. With the way his teammate was looking at him ambiguously, he wasn't sure if he was doing a good job of it.

"Sasuke-kun, don't you think it's a little too late for you to be telling me that?" she asked lightly as she browsed through the Yamanaka store. He didn't like the way Sakura was talking to him. She used to speak to him as if he was the only one that matters. And now, it was like he was nothing.

"What do you mean?" He picked up a lily from a vase, and was tempted to crush it.

Her emerald eyes landed on him, and he fought to keep his composure. Dammit, he _hated_ how she wasn't single anymore. "I mean how you never showed the slightest bit of concern for me when I told you I cared about you. And now you think you can make my decisions for me?" For a moment, he thought he saw tears brimming at her eyes, but she turned away. He was glad.

"When you cared about me, nothing would ever go wrong in your life." Her head turned sharply at this, and he was sure she was glaring at him.

"I don't think you understand. When I cared about you, _everything_ went wrong." She bit her bottom lip. "Nothing I did was able to please you. And it felt like I was nothing to you."

_Huh,_ he thought. _How ironic._ "I didn't steal your rights from you."

"But I _wanted_ you to!" She threw the yellow carnation in her hand down to the floor, and Sasuke stared at it for a moment, fighting his surprise at her outburst. "When I wanted you to do something, you'd never do it! But along comes Itachi-san and asks me to marry him—I just wanted to be cared about, and you know what, Sasuke-kun? You never did it!"

He blinked once. Twice. Thrice. "Itachi doesn't care, Sakura."

Her bottom lip began to tremble. "At least he pretends he does." And it was then that he realized that she still loved him. She didn't love his brother. Not really, anyway.

But apparently, it was too late.

He didn't know what he was too late for. He didn't quite understand what she was talking about, with her wanting to do something and caring and all that other crap—but with the way her eyes were glazed over with tears, he figured he did something wrong.

It wasn't like he was going to apologize for it, though. Uchihas never apologized. Especially when they didn't know what they were supposed to be apologizing for.

**x**

On the day of the wedding, Sakura was blushing profusely. Sasuke had never seen her smile so widely, and it made him feel sour when he knew she wasn't smiling for him.

Today, he decided, was the worst day of his life. Worse than the time his dad scolded him for breaking a bowl when he was eight.

And what was even worse than _that _was the fact that he was the best man. He knew Itachi did it out of spite and for his own humor—that was just the sadistic bastard he was. The suit was tight around his neck, and he wanted to burn everything white and fluffy and happy within the building.

While exchanging vows, there was all that talk about "that precious someone" his brother had mentioned a while ago. He still didn't understand it. Somehow, he didn't really want to.

Many people cried that day. His mother cried, seeing her first son getting married to such a charming young girl. Sakura's parents cried, seeing how happy she was when she whispered lovingly, "I do." Even Ino, the pretty blonde bridesmaid, cried at her best friend and rival's happiness.

What surprised Sasuke was that he was crying, too.

**

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A/N: **I know this was more of a one-sided SasuSaku than an ItaSaku, but I wanted to see what it'd be like if I made it in Sasuke's POV. I sort of liked the way I portrayed him here, 'cause he's not sure what he's feeling towards Sakura. I see too many fics where Sasuke realizes he loves Sakura, and it just kills me.

I have another non-massacre ItaSaku—like, actually ItaSaku this time—that'll be posted on Christmas day, so look forward to it!

07-31-09: Edited. I'm still iffy about it, though. :/


End file.
